Opposition Announcement on Cosmetics Testing Welcome News

Animal advocacy group SAFE say they’re
delighted at today's announcement from the Labour party that
they have committed to a ban on cosmetics testing on
animals, plus the sale and import of animal tested
products.

The news comes after a two year campaign
by SAFE and Humane Society International on the ‘Be
Cruelty-Free NZ’ campaign. It also follows a Supplementary
Order Paper (SOP), introduced in Parliament by Green Party
MP Mojo Mathers that would amend the Animal Welfare
Amendment Bill, currently under consultation, to include a
prohibition on the use of animals in experiments relating to
cosmetics.

“It is great to see politicians
getting behind this important issue. Thousands of people
have said they want a ban in law – and now it looks like
they are being listened to. No one wants to see animals
suffer for the sake of a new shampoo.” says SAFE head of
campaigns Mandy Carter.

“New Zealand’s
reputation is increasingly coming under scrutiny from
overseas, we’ve seen it recently with our factory farming
practices. A ban would ensure that animals do not have to
suffer horrific deaths for the sake of cosmetic products.
Animal testing involves some of the most horrific cruelty
imaginable, and there really is no excuse.”

New
Zealand is moving forward in a growing global trend towards
cruelty-free products. Israel, India, the 28 member states
of the European Union and most recently the Brazilian state
of São Paulo, have already banned cosmetics animal testing.
Legislative measures are under discussion in Australia,
South Korea, the United States and beyond.

It is
believed that no cosmetic testing currently takes place in
New Zealand, but a ban would prevent cruel products from
coming in from overseas. It would also ensure that as bans
occur elsewhere in the world, animal testing companies do
not move to New Zealand.

SAFE has campaigned on the
issue of cosmetics testing for many years and is pleased to
see that concerns are finally being considered. The public
can urge party leaders to support the SOP by visiting animalwelfare.org.nz

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